So you have a degree, does that mean you're smart?

[SeaCat]

Working in the hospital like I do I get to see people at their best and worst.

Sometimes I get the biggest kick out of the stupid things people do.

Some of the best.

An M.D. came onto the floor one day sporting a nice bandage on his arm. When he was asked what had happened to him he ashamedly stated that he had placed a can on the stove to heat it up. A very short time later the can burst with enough force to propel the top/lid across the room and embed it into the wall. Along the way the can top had brushed against his arm cutting him. He had not puntured the top of the can.

Another time one of the R.N.'s came in sporting a new hairstyle and looking like she had a nasty sunburn on her face. Her new hairstyle included no hair around the forehead, or even eyebrows. She had decided the grill wasn't warm enough to cook the dinner and used the lighter fluid to get it burning hotter.

On yet another day a different M.D. came in and complained bitterly about his pool being out of service until he replaced the filter. When I asked him what was wrong with the filter he stated that he had been almost out of Chlorine for the pool. (His system has one add the Chlorine to the filter.) In his garage he had several different but almost empty containers of Chlorine, each one stating not to mix with other types of Chlorinators. He had Granules, Tabs and several large chunks. He mixed them together and added the mix to the filter. The Fire Department ended up dumping his entire filter into the pool when the different types of Chlorinators reacted together.

When I was working in the gas station I had a nice car pull in. We're talking one of the first Lexus to be seen on Cape Cod. Who ever was driving it had money. When they pulled into the station the car was overheating so they pulled around back and started hosing down the Radiator to help it cool. Then he had an inspiration. If hosing down the radiator helped cool down the engine then hosing down the engine would do it even faster. He opened the hood and sprayed cold water directly on the engine, including the block. Within seconds there was a loud crack and oil started pouring from under the engine.

So what stupid things have you seen "Smart" people do?

Cat

 

[rgraham666]

Are we going to be here for a while? I'm pretty smart and I've done lots of stupid things in my life.

I'm thinking now of a quote from Peter F. Drucker: "The only thing a degree signifies is that the person has sat for a long time."

 

[SlickTony]

Are we going to be here for a while? I'm pretty smart and I've done lots of stupid things in my life.

I'm thinking now of a quote from Peter F. Drucker: "The only thing a degree signifies is that the person has sat for a long time."

Me, too.

 

[jomar]

...

So what stupid things have you seen "Smart" people do?

Cat

It's proportional because higher education is the process of learning more and more about less and less until you finally know nothing at all.

 

[jomar]

I have also heard an absolutely brilliant person who swims laps in a pool look at her watch and comment in concern that while she swims several hundred yards the watch was only rated for fifty. She was thinking horizontal while the watch was gauged for depth. It was a real "doh" moment for her and she had the self-confidence to laugh at herself.

 

[DeeZire]

So what stupid things have you seen "Smart" people do?

Cat

If the word 'degree' is supposed to be synonymous with 'smart', the words 'George Bush' need no explanation.

 

[Guest]

I can't make fun of degrees, sorry.

Having tolerated eight years of ridicule for higher ed I celebrate it all.

Are there idiots, college-educated or no? Of course there are.

 

[sr71plt]

It shows you're smart enough to know you need the degrees to have a shot at the better-paying jobs.

 

[rgraham666]

Actually the only degree that I have a prejudice against is an MBA.

Even then I've know some good people with MBAs.

 

[kiba]

i have 2 degrees and NO iam not smart just persistent

 

[Guest]

Degrees do show persistence.

And, for many, a great deal of hard work.

And a great deal of money.

And, optimally, a great deal of information garnered.

 

[Stella_Omega]

I can introduce you to abysmally stupid people who have no degree at all.

And brilliant people with plenty of common sense, who do have degrees.

And vicey versey.

 

[DeeZire]

It shows you're smart enough to know you need the degrees to have a shot at the better-paying jobs.

But do better paying jobs equal a better life? Polling has shown that the more money people have, the more miserable they are.

 

[incubus666]

The link is part of a letter to investors in a hedge fund that the owner was disolving. The fund was very sucessful and the owner walked away with money in his pocket.

Note his comments, in the second paragraph, bout all the high faluting MBAs and how smart they are.

Andrew Lahde of Lahde Capital Management’s farewell letter to his investors.

"Today I write not to gloat. Given the pain that nearly everyone is experiencing, that would be entirely inappropriate. Nor am I writing to make further predictions, as most of my forecasts in previous letters have unfolded or are in the process of unfolding. Instead, I am writing to say goodbye.

Recently, on the front page of Section C of the Wall Street Journal, a hedge fund manager who was also closing up shop (a $300 million fund), was quoted as saying, “What I have learned about the hedge fund business is that I hate it.” I could not agree more with that statement. I was in this game for the money. The low hanging fruit, i.e. idiots whose parents paid for prep school, Yale, and then the Harvard MBA, was there for the taking. These people who were (often) truly not worthy of the education they received (or supposedly received) rose to the top of companies such as AIG, Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers and all levels of our government. All of this behavior supporting the Aristocracy only ended up making it easier for me to find people stupid enough to take the other side of my trades. God bless America."

In my opinion we tend to confuse being educated with being smart. While they are not necessary mutually exclusive they are not necessarily mutually inclusive ether.

Years ago I knew an electronic technician who was a great trouble shooter. The only problem was he always needed a helper. The tech held the prints and the helper used the meter, O'scope, and screwdriver. Give the tech a screwdriver and he would end up sticking it through his hand or fry the meter by trying to check more voltage then the meter was designed for.

Educated but not smart.

My brother in law was a major airline piolet for over 35 years (educated and experienced) but when it comes to smart he is in the tank.

I know a guy who was uneducated but pretty smart. He lived in a town with two regional banks. He also owned a small business. Let's us call him Frank. Frank want to bank A and borrowed money with part of his business as collateral. He used the money to buy stock in bank B. Frank then went to bank B and asked for a loan of the same amount. When they talked about interest rates Frank mentioned he was a stock holder in bank B. The bank then gave him a reduced interest rate. Frank then payed off the loan from bank A. I will admit I do not know the exact rates but in the end it worked out something like this.

Bank B was charging him 4% interest and the stock was paying a 6% dividend. So in effect bank B was paying Frank 2% to loan him money. Not bad for a guy with just a high school education.

Just my thoughts on being educated vs. being smart.

Mike S.

 

[TE999]

Heh! I have two degrees and I can ride a bike and chew gum at the same time.

Book larnin' and common sense are mutually exclusive in terms of how one goes thru life.

We used to joke in grad school that PhD. stood for 'piled high and deep'. Some of our prof's were brilliant in their fields...but couldn't balance a checkbook.

Go figure.

 

[Guest]

Heh! I have two degrees and I can ride a bike and chew gum at the same time.

Book larnin' and common sense are mutually exclusive in terms of how one goes thru life.

We used to joke in grad school that PhD. stood for 'piled high and deep'. Some of our prof's were brilliant in their fields...but couldn't balance a checkbook.

Go figure.

I know I'm biased but I must disagree.

I don't care if the brain surgeon can balance his checkbook.

I wish to know whether or not he can operate on brains.

When we first took our daughter to be tested for everything her child psych said many interesting things.

Among them, after diagnosis for her ADHD, her Asperger's, her gifted issues -

He said - your daughter may very well plan the manned mission to Mars - and then get lost finding her car in the parking lot.

Specialists are just that. Absent-minded professors are named so for a good reason.

 

[TE999]

I know I'm biased but I must disagree.

I don't care if the brain surgeon can balance his checkbook.

I wish to know whether or not he can operate on brains.

Specialists are just that. Absent-minded professors are named so for a good reason.

You? Biased? Nahhh...

It's true that we want whomever is providing us a service...be it an oil change or brain surgery...to know what they're doing.

That being said, I do think academia attracts the intellectually brilliant, and therein lies the 'absent minded' aspect...their minds are on loftier pursuits...not the mundane like putting a lit pipe in your pocket or leaving your purse on the roof of your car and driving away. Much like a harried housewife wrangling groceries and her crumb crunchers into her minivan and backing into a shopping cart corral.

 

[sr71plt]

But do better paying jobs equal a better life? Polling has shown that the more money people have, the more miserable they are.

I know the Disney answer would be no (with stars sparkling in the sky). But, sorry, reality (despite any polls--which are usually worded to get the desired "goody for me" answer) is that money/good-paying job can help grease the skids for a "better," more fulfilling life. You just have to keep balance and perspective--and that's not really controlled by either having or not having the money.

I know it's popular to say it's otherwise (just like the church telling everyone in the Middle Ages that they would be so much happier in life by gilding the altars of the church with everything they had. But, hey, there are some churches still playing that game today, aren't there? --and probably sponsoring those polls. )

 

[DeeZire]

I know the Disney answer would be no (with stars sparkling in the sky). But, sorry, reality (despite any polls--which are usually worded to get the desired "goody for me" answer) is that money/good-paying job can help grease the skids for a "better," more fulfilling life. [bold]You just have to keep balance and perspective--and that's not really controlled by either having or not having the money.[/bold]

I've seen the claim that money doesn't necessarily buy satisfaction numerous times in the context of those above the middle class - the ones who are constantly worried about their stock portfolios, or who have no life because all they do is work, eat badly, and not sleep enough. Oddly enough, this is also the fate of those on the bottom of the income ladder who also may end up doing nothing but working, eating badly, and not sleeping enough.

Another phenomenon is teachers who burn out and end up doing construction jobs because they get more satisfaction out of it. That's my point - satisfaction with your vocation can be much more fulfilling than making a shitload of money doing something you hate day in and day out. I mean, what is your life? Is it what you do eight or ten hours a day, or is it what you do during the time when you're not working? If all you have to claim of your life is a few hours a day and a day off every weekend, are you better off than the guy who can't wait to get to his job each day because he enjoys what he's doing?

On polls, you are right that they can be weighted for a desired outcome, but if you use that tack in your argument, you're getting into Box-land, where data isn't valid if it doesn't suit your ideology, and you don't want to go there, now do you?

 

[Misty_Morning]

......

 

[wildehafer]

There isn't a course or degree for commonsense.

Either you got it, or ya don't.

 

[cloudy]

Sure, let's continue the disdain for education that George Bush is so fond of.



eta: I have two degrees that I worked damn hard to get, so I won't join in looking down my nose at those who have done the same thing I have. Sorry.

 

[matriarch]

I can't make fun of degrees, sorry.

Having tolerated eight years of ridicule for higher ed I celebrate it all.

Are there idiots, college-educated or no? Of course there are.

I'm with you. I will never denegrate degrees gained honourably and honestly, through hard work and dedication.

I worked damn hard for my degree, over 7 years, while working a full time responsible job, running a home, taking care of my family, and commuting 4 hours a day to and from work. In between that I studied 15 hours a week minimum every week. When I finally graduated with an Honours Degree, at age 50, that was the proudest moment of my life.

But yes, I've done some dumb things in my life, and said them. Ask the wife, I constantly keep her amused. I though, do have the common sense to laugh at myself.

 

[freshface]

Sure, let's continue the disdain for education that George Bush is so fond of.



eta: I have two degrees that I worked damn hard to get, so I won't join in looking down my nose at those who have done the same thing I have. Sorry.

For me, my degrees mean that I'm eligible for my current job. And yes, I worked hard to earn them. But they don't mean that I know everything or can do everything. I've worked with some truly brilliant people at the absolute top of their field, and marveled that they were able to dress themselves and get to work in the morning.

I've seen from Cat's posts that he has mechanical skills that I will never possess. Despite my father's best efforts, I can't cut wood to measurement or in a straight line. Never mind rebuilding an engine. And I can only aspire to have his powers of observation and storytelling skills.

My nephew chose to go the trade route after high school. He's a journeyman electrician making a good living for himself. He's not any less smart because he decided college wasn't for him.

We all have things that we do very well and things that we don't. To me, having a degree means that I demonstrated mastery in my field and that I am capable of learning. It makes me eligible for employment and licensing. It does not necessarily make me smarter or more capable than someone without a degree.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

In many cases a degree gives the holder an inflated sense of competence that doesnt exist. It's like owning a piano and knowing music theory. But what can you do with it?